umeboshi
by AGENT Kuma-chan
Summary: It was a romantic story. That was how Momiji would tell this to their kids, about how she fell in love with Tohru. It was a romantic story, made even more romantic because they chose each other.


**Title: **umeboshi

**Prompt:** trans!momiji, Momiji/Tohru, hurt/comfort, fluff/romance or at least a happy ending, soulmate AU with writing at touching,

**A/N:** For pinkthespianlesbian, for the Fruits Basket SS. I don't think I managed to fit all of your prompts together (and Momiji realizes she's trans in this fic a bit earlier than your headcanon because I missed that line about 3rd year. XD), but I hope you enjoy this anyways!

**Summary:** _It was a romantic story. That was how Momiji would tell this to their kids, about how she fell in love with Tohru. It was a romantic story, made even more romantic because they chose each other._

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i.

"It's a romantic story," Momiji chirped, leaning back on the school steps. It was a cloudless, warm spring day and she was happy they were finally in their summer uniforms. Kicking her feet in front of her, Momiji leaned back and stared at the bright blue sky. "My parents met in Germany, when they were students."

"Oh." Tohru clapped her hands excitedly. On another person, this would seem sarcastic, but every action she did was always painfully earnest. Her eyes were bright as she leaned eagerly toward Momiji, already knowing how the story will go and still wanting to hear about it. "Was it love at first sight?"

"Da!" Tohru was infectious and Momiji's smile grew even wider. She leaned closer to Tohru, until their shoulders bumped. There was something thrilling about being this close to Tohru, about this casual nearness that she could have that almost none of the other zodiacs could have. She felt a brief pang of pity for Kyo and Yuki.

"Oooohhh!" Tohru's hand pressed against the steps as she steadied herself, her hand overlapping Momiji's slightly.

A jolt of electricity ran through Momiji and she swallowed. It was a very brief pang of pity for her rivals. As they said, all's fair in love and war. Gathering herself, Momiji continued, using the story as an excuse to hold Tohru's hand entirely. "The second their hands touched, writing appeared on their arms like vines! They were soulmates! They didn't let go of each other once, not even when they ate."

Tohru stared at their clasped hands and squealed. "Awww, that's so cute!"

Momiji would practically see the hearts flying off her. She nodded sagely. "It gets better! They used the words as their wedding vows."

"Awwwwwww." Tohru hummed, almost bouncing as she thought about it all. She didn't let go, her hand radiating warmth that shot straight to Momiji's core. "That's such a cute story. Mom never found her soulmate but she and Dad were very happy anyways. Actually, right after they got married, Mom dragged Dad to the tattoo parlor and forced him to tattoo her name on his wrist." She chuckled. "They got their own versions of the soulmate words."

"Really?" Momiji blinked. She liked that idea. Liked it a lot. The control it gave, the ability to chose, she liked everything about it. Breaking into laughter, she reached around with her other arm and hugged Tohru, careful not to let go of their clasped hands. "That sounds just like her."

"That's what Uo-chan and Hana-chan said too," Tohru said proudly, wrapping an arm around Momiji. "Though Mom told me the tattoos hurt more than expected and they both spent the week crying."

Momiji snorted. "Somehow, that also sounds like her."

ii.

A less romantic story, one that Momiji was reluctant to tell Tohru, was how her mother rejected her at a hug. How her mother had gone mad until the only solution was erasing her memories and erasing Momiji's place in them.

It was funny, now, that her mother's touch would no longer transform her. That it was her father instead who turned her into a rabbit. Would her mother have kept her memories if she'd known this would happen? Or would she have seen that as another failure, another mark against her monster of a child?

Not that it mattered either way. Her mother would never know. Instead, Momiji would wear her dresses and pad her chest and grow out her hair, each change making her look more and more like her mother. It was hard to hide it now; her father wouldn't let her hang out at the company anymore.

All that she had left was her name, _Momiji_, the only link to a family that no longer existed. Maybe she should change. She wasn't sure she wanted to.

iii.

The school was brimming with life, the school fair bringing students and visitors through each of the classrooms and hallways. It was a dangerous time for a Sohma and Kyo was already hiding on the roof, both scared and angry with the horde that invaded his home. Not that it helped much, considering the mob of cats that swarmed the roof, catching everyone's eyes.

At least that made things a little easier for the others. Yuki didn't have to hide in the back of every classroom even and Haru didn't have to destroy everyone he bumped shoulders with and Momiji…

Well, Momiji got to enjoy a date with Tohru. A kinda one-sided date, for now, but a date nonetheless. She bounced forward as she and Tohru strolled through the halls, taking in the other class's events. "What do you want to see first?"

"I don't know." Tohru smiled happily, her eyes jumping from one door to the next. There was a haunted house, a café, an art gallery—the possibilities were endless. And overwhelming. "They all look so fun! What do you want to do?"

"Me?" Momiji slowed down her pace till she was walking side by side with Tohru. Her arms hung at her side, her hands barely brushing Tohru's as they walked. A jolt of electricity ran through her at each touch and she swallowed. "Maybe we could do the haunted house first?"

"T-t-the h-h-haunted h-h-house?" Tohru stuttered, her expression freezing. Stiffly, she squared her shoulders and marched toward it. "S-s-sure."

It was cute. Too cute. Momiji tried not to laugh too much and offered, "If you're too scared, we can do something else."

"N-n-no, I'm f-f-f-fine." Tohru smiled once more but it came out more a grimace than anything else. She looked like a robot as she moved, her knees and elbows locked into position. "L-let's g-go."

Well, if Tohru was going to be so brave, Momiji couldn't slack off either. Nodding, she reached out and grabbed Tohru's hand. No more of that brushing nonsense. Her skin felt like it was on fire and Momiji was certain her ears were turning several different shades of red, but she'd done it.

She'd grabbed Tohru's hand. And if Tohru didn't pull away, was still smiling at her brightly, she could take that as a victory, right?

iv.

Momiji washed her hands, letting the cool water soak into her skin. They still burned, even now, hours after Tohru let go, hours after they'd parted.

Ok, it was about time she'd admitted it. To herself, at least, if to no one else.

This wasn't just a crush anymore. No, this was love. Momiji was in love with Tohru.

She sighed softly, leaning forward to rest her forehead on the bathroom mirror. After all those months of teasing Yuki and Kyo for being dense, this all felt highly ironic. Momiji wasn't even sure if she was going to confess to Tohru (_sorry for calling you a coward, Kyo_) and even worse, there was Akito to deal with.

Maybe Akito wouldn't care as much. He'd hated it when Momiji had started transitioning but then it'd became a new cage for him to keep her in, a new barrage of insults to hurt her with. Suddenly, she'd realized just how much harder it was for Kisa and Rin.

How much harder it would be for her, going forward.

The cool glass didn't make it any easier to think and Momiji's hands were still burning like they'd been seared. Like Tohru was imprinted on them. Maybe she was. Lifting her hands, she stared at them blankly, taking in the small ridges on her knuckles, and the growing thickness of her fingers. The lines on her palm that turned into words, wrapping around her wrist—

Words.

Momiji blinked. There were words tattooed on her wrist. Her soulmate marks. She rolled back her sleeves frantically, trying to read the characters engraved on her skin. How had she missed this earlier? Had she bumped into someone at the fair? _U-m-e-b-o-s-h-I_, it said.

_Umeboshi._

There was only one person that could mean, only one person whose soulmate words could be that.

"Tohru," she murmured to her skin, kissing the mark softly. Momiji's heart leapt to her mouth and she felt a tear slide down her cheek. Her soulmate was Tohru.

She could fight Akito, if it was for Tohru.

She could fight anyone, if it was Tohru.

They were soulmates and Momiji would one day tell their adopted kids, _It was a romantic story,_ _a story about two people who stayed together and never forgot anything, even the bad things._

v.

Or it would have been a romantic tale, if not for Tohru's extremely puzzled look as Momiji asked her if she'd gotten her soulmate writing. She'd waited as long as she could, waited for class to end, for her bodyguards to go home (Kyo was harder to force away than Yuki), waited for them to finally be alone and sitting at their usual spot on the school step, before asking.

All in vain, it seemed.

"My soulmate marks?" Tohru blinked, confused. She glanced around as though to make sure no one else was around. "Me?"

She'd almost forgotten how dense Tohru was. "Yes." Momiji nodded eagerly, taking Tohru's hands into her own. Rubbing her thumb against Tohru's wrists, she was slightly disappointed the marks hadn't appeared in the same place, but that was fine. It was rare enough to find one's soulmate, let alone to find one with an identical mark. Her parents had been lucky. Quieting her mind, Momiji peered up at Tohru's eyes and asked again, "Have you found any words on you?"

Tohru frowned, thinking heavily on it. She twisted her lips, her expression growing sterner and sterner with each moment that passed. The moment she turned into a hardboiled detective, she sighed and shook her head. "Not one."

"Really?" Momiji's heart plummeted to her shoes and she almost dropped Tohru's hands in surprise. Was it possible to have a one-sided soulmate?

"Yes." Tohru nodded solemnly. "It would be wonderful to have a soulmate but I'm not sure I have one." She chuckled sadly. "It might be too wonderful for me to have."

And maybe Tohru didn't have the mark and maybe the _umeboshi_ meant some other kind do-gooder or some guy with an obsession with pickles, but that didn't matter. Momiji was used to life not going her way. Was used to having to choose her own path.

Kyoko had made her own soulmate.

Momiji could do the same.

"You have a soulmate, Tohru," Momiji answered softly, leaning closer.

"I do?" Tohru's eyes widened in surprise. "Who?"

"Me."

She'd make sure to not tell their kids how awkward their first kiss was, how they'd bumped noses and laughed about it after.

vi.

"And that's how your grandmas fell in love," Mitsuru murmured, ruffling the hair of her son. "It's a romantic story, isn't it?"

Aki bit his cheek, taking it all in. He swayed side to side as he came up with his question. Because there was always a question with him; at four, there was still too many things he didn't know. Mitsuru knew that, knew that she'd done the same to Momiji and Torhu when she was little, but that didn't make it any easier.

After a few minutes, he finally asked, "Granny didn't have a mark?"

"Actually…" Mitsuru laughed awkwardly. Leaning closer, she stage-whispered to her son, "It turned out, Grandma Tohru did have a mark."

"She did?" His mouth fell open in surprise.

"Her face looked just like yours when she found out." Mitsuru nodded. Reaching around, she patted her son on the middle of his back. "Right there. Just where the umeboshi in a onigiri is, that was where her mark was. So of course she didn't see it herself—Grandma Momiji was the one who spotted it and told her."

"Umeboshi?" Aki jumped up and down. "Just like in her stories!"

Mitsuru nodded. "Yeah, just like in her stories."

There was something fitting about that, when all was said and done.


End file.
